Raffles The Amateur Cracksman was written as a series of short stories by E.W. Hornung, and made its first appearance in Cassell's and The Strand before being collected into novel form in 1899. Other Raffles stories by Hornung appeared over the years, culminating in the full length novel Mr. Justice Raffles in 1909.

Various film and TV programs followed, including a filmed version with Ronald Colman in the title role in the thirties, David Niven in the forties, and a TV production was made by Yorkshire Television in 1976, starring Anthony Valentine as A.J. Raffles and Christopher Strauli as Harry (Bunny) Manders.

Hornung's Raffles stories comprise the following:

The Amateur Cracksman (1899)

The Black Mask (1901)

A Thief In The Night (1905)

Mr. Justice Raffles (1909)

'A man's reach must exceed his grasp, dear boy, or what the dickens is a heaven for?' (Raffles: A Costume Piece)